The Union home minister recalled that the BJP had won far greater number of seats in the last assembly polls than the JD(U) but Prime Minister Narendra Modi kept up his promise to back Kumar for another term in office.
'You cannot win an election without putting together a massive war chest.' 'It is impossible to put a war chest together, without giving and taking favours from India Inc, with a large dose of extortion thrown in,' says Devangshu Datta.
Though Modi did not name any person or organisation, the ruling BJP has been critical of a section of human rights groups, including those with a global presence, for allegedly highlighting cases of HR violations selectively and in a one-sided manner to target the government.
The top court pronounced the verdict on a number of petitions challenging the restrictions and internet blockade imposed in Jammu and Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370 in August last year. The court heard the petitions filed by various petitioners including Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad and Kashmir Times editor Anuradha Bhasin.
'Kudos to the SC & the CJI for standing up to the Govt on the gross misuse of this colonial law of sedition to silence dissent'
The ministry of electronics and information technology (MeitY) in a press release revealed that the Ministry's Secretary, in a virtual interaction with Twitter officials, expressed his deep disappointment to Twitter leadership about the manner in which it has unwillingly, grudgingly and with great delay complied with the substantial parts of the order.
'Even if it is difficult to replicate Bangladesh, India can cause sufficient turmoil in Pakistan to keep it off balance,' says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
As part of the efforts to bring several opposition parties together on a common platform to defeat the BJP in 2024 Lok Sabha polls, Pawar met Kharge on Thursday evening.
Kerala-based journalist Sidhique Kappan, arrested in October 2020 while on his way to Hathras where a young Dalit woman had died after allegedly being gang-raped, has approached the Supreme Court seeking bail in the case.
Former United States president Donald Trump has announced that he will run for the president in 2024 to make America 'great and glorious' again, vowing to fight like no one to defeat the 'radical left Democrats' that are trying to destroy the country from within.
Sorabjee had been honoured with Padma Vibhushan in 2002 for his defence of the freedom of expression and the protection of human rights.
The National Crime Records Bureau data, referred to and quoted by rights lawyer Vrinda Grover, assumes significance in view of the observations of an apex court bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana that there have been "enormous misuse" of the colonial era penal law on sedition and very low rate of conviction in such cases.
Republican Kevin McCarthy was elected as the new speaker of the United States House of Representatives in a dramatic post-midnight ballot on Saturday, after days of intense negotiations and a series of humiliating defeats to finally capture the gavel on a historic 15th attempt.
Additional sessions judge Anil Antil dismissed the application of Bhupinder Tomar, president of the 'Hindu Raksha Dal', and said that in the past such incidents have flared communal tensions leading to riots and loss to life and property. Tomar was accused of raising communal slogans and inciting youth to propagate against a particular religion at a rally at Jantar Mantar on August 8. "We are not Taliban State. Rule of law is the sacrosanct governing principle in our plural and multi-cultural society. While the whole of India is celebrating 'Azadi ka Amrut Mahotsav', there are some minds still chained with Intolerant and self centric beliefs," the judge said in the order passed on August 21.
He called on all sections of the society, especially SC/ST and other weaker sections to unite for safeguarding the Constitution and democracy.
Senior advocate Arvind Datar, appearing for Twitter on Monday online, argued the company was following the rules laid out in the Information Technology Act.
"There was absolutely no need or necessity to mount a visceral attack on the religious beliefs of the Hindus. It was unwarranted and utterly unrelated to the occasion. That is what makes it deliberate and malicious," Justice G R Swaminathan of Madras High Court said.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday declined to grant interim protection from arrest to Ali Abbas Zafar, director of the web series Tandav, and others seeking the quashing of FIRs against them for allegedly hurting religious sentiments of Hindus, and issued notices Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and other states on their pleas.
The Supreme Court on Monday said it will examine the interpretation of sedition law, particularly in the light of media rights and free speech, as it gave protection to Telugu news channels -- TV5 and ABN Andhrajyothi -- from any coercive action in a case lodged against them under the colonial era provision.
'The best remedy would be to scrap Section 124-A of the IPC, a colonial vestige, altogether.' 'However, if legislators don't want to do so, they can do two things.' 'They can formally amend Section 124-A to bring it in line with what the Supreme Court has said about sedition.' 'The words which stand on the statute book today were inserted in 1898.' 'The Supreme Court's words are not a part of Section 124-A.'
The Supreme Court said on Thursday it is not the 'interpreter' of the Holy Quran and it has been argued before it in the Karnataka hijab ban matter that courts are not equipped to interpret religious scriptures.
According to the cause list uploaded on the apex court website, a bench comprising Chief Justice N V Ramana and Justice Surya Kant would hear on August 5 three separate petitions seeking probe into the reports of alleged snooping by government agencies on eminent citizens, politicians and scribes by using Israeli spyware Pegasus.
The government questioned the manner in which Twitter "officially allows fake, unverified, anonymous and automated bot accounts to be operated on its platform" and said it raises doubts about its commitment to transparency and healthy conversation on the platform.
According to a 2019 Congressional Research Service report of August 2019, a longstanding goal of US policy in South Asia has been to prevent the India-Pakistan conflict from escalating to interstate war.
Asked about action taken against those spreading fake news, and publishers of anti-national material, he said more than 60 accounts have been blocked including those on YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to entertain the bail plea of Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who is in CBI custody in connection with the excise policy case.
Freedom of speech and expression does not merit debate; it exists with conditions to regulate its use. However, a citizen's rights end where another citizen's begin
The top court said in order to declare whether the exercise is academic or infructuous, it needs to examine the matter since both sides are not agreeable.
Unless Indians learn to speak freely and fearlessly, 'true greatness will elude this nation, no matter how brilliant the individual at the helm may be,' says Aakar Patel.
The police made the statement after a bench of Justices Nitin Jamdar and Sarang Kotwal said the issue involved the larger question of Ranaut's fundamental right to free speech and that the court will have to grant her some ad-interim relief.
'I think the President will note that the world is looking to India to continue to uphold its democratic traditions, respect for religious minorities,' the official said.
Freedom of speech does not mean you can write or say anything and everything. You cannot hurt the sentiments of the people on the pretext of freedom of speech, says Dinanath Batra, one of the main petitioners against Wendy Doniger's book, The Hindus: An Alternative History.
Harbhajan Singh lashed out at Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan for speaking of hatred in his UN General Assembly speech.
The verdict was reserved on August 13 last year after bench of Justice Dipak Misra and Justice Prafulla C Pant heard the matter spread over a month.
'The larger intention is to create a political State where there is no opposition.'
The gorgeous star cast of Four More Shots Please! is on The Man's latest cover.
Rajya Sabha chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar on Friday suspended Congress member of Parliament Rajani Ashokrao Patil for the remainder of the current Budget Session for filming House proceedings.
"Proper procedure of law is followed in Maharashtra. Police can take action against anyone if they have evidence. The state government hasn't acted out of revenge," Raut told reporters when asked about Goswami's arrest.
The New York Times reported that according to Rushdie's agent, Andrew Wylie, the Mumbai-born controversial author was on a ventilator and could not speak.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday said it does not want freedom of press to be muzzled but it cannot create a separate avenue for journalists to approach it directly for quashing of FIRs lodged against them.
